Positives: it’s cool, slow-burning and as full-flavoured as you could ask for – almost a meal in itself, if you see what I mean. I can’t imagine anybody wanting much of it during a twenty-four hour cycle. (It's not for the fastidious palate, though; notice some of the things that people have compared it to: iron, blood, salty water, fishing boats, burnt steak!) Negatives: it’s excessively laborious to prepare and keep alight. It’s as moist as it looks in the picture; it needs to be dried and aired quite a bit before ignition is attempted.

Wives, servants, cats and dogs be warned: the room note of this stuff is absolutely terrible; like a fire in a slaughterhouse. It will haunt your deepest dreams, and not in a good way. Not surprisingly, the ghost of Black Irish Twist is mighty hard to exorcise from whatever pipe you smoke it in.

Hell’s bells, it’s strong! Oh, my Lord! For my tender sensibilities, this ultra-manly tobacco is far, far too wicked in terms of nicotine content. Half way down the bowl I had to lie down and pray for deliverance. You need to be a serious vitamin N junkie to like, or even to be able to stand, it. If, however, you’re looking for a robust, old-fashioned baccy that has not been tampered with in any way, have a slap at this. It’s an experience and a half: no scents or flavourings or fancy dancing – just Man against Tobacco. Try it in your smallest bowl, and don’t try to walk or focus on anything for some time afterwards.

To the Barbarian Hero kind of smoker, therefore, I recommend it. I swear I'll never touch it again, but I can be objective enough to see its virtues even though it half killed me. To more genteel pipemen – wimps like me – I say: stay away from this stuff; it’ll make you want to sit on the floor and cry.

Thus: somewhat recommended, depending on who you are and what you like. To be on the safe side, put your affairs in order before you smoke this, and maybe fill out your organ-donor card (assuming there'd be anything left of you worth recycling).

Why 4 stars?

I can understand if you hate it, but I love it!

It's not a complex and elegant blend, but you get a mellow smoke with a lightly sour flavor (iron, blood, salty water, fishing boat) of natural tobacco.

Smoking this stuff is the best way for me to relax. After the first few puffs - accompanied by a bottle of Merlot - all problems are fading away at once! Something magic!

I'm satisfied with one bowl a week (nicotine content!), but I don't want to miss this stuff anymore.

A relict of the "good?" old times!

Thank you Gawith & Hoggarth!

By the way, smoking indoors, it' an excellent mokito repellant!

Taste like a burnt steak and I like that, something a bit different than the sweet smokes I'm used to.

I really liked this tobacco the first time I tried it, liked it so much I packed a second bowl BIG MISTAKE.

Nicotine content slammed into me hard half way through the second bowl and I broke out in a cold sweat; had to go and lay down for 20 min. VERY STRONG (my world was spinning like a top).

I still smoke this occasionally, but with much more respect. I like this tobacco early in the morning after a hearty meal, and in small doses.

Update: If this tobacco gets too dry it becomes just terrible.

07/27/09 UPDATE: I am revising some of my reviews. I have given out more 4 star ratings than anything else. That practice is probably not helping. So, I am reducing BIT to 3 stars, not because I like it less than I did before, but because I am limiting 4 stars to fewer than 25% of all my reviews. One day I may use the 4 star rating to designate my top five.

FURTHER Update: I have become a hopeless Peterson's Irish Flake junkie since writing the reviews below. However, my local 'bacconist has a bad memory and 'forgot' my recent order of Peterson's finest! Alas! So, twitching and gibbering on a Sunday morning with nothing stronger than St.Bruno Flake to hand I turned again - with considerable reluctance - to this stuff. Now, it's dried out a fair bit & it still tastes pretty damn bad BUT, it DOES give you a satisfactory fix of that evil vitamin N. So, thank you Black Irish Twist, for that. A little like drinking a bottle of Listerine to keep from the DT's when the champagne has run out (actually, Listerine might be a good idea after this stuff..).

Update: I think I was, originally, too taken with the sheer, bizarre, novelty value of a tobacco that tastes exactly like a greasy carbonised steak. Beyond this admitted novelty, and the sheer nicotine punch, I really can't see any reason why I'd ever want to smoke this again - since this same punch can be easily found with many, many tobaccos that are pleasing to smoke.

Original Review: If you were to put a steak under a high grill - after basting it with some kind of dark, Tabasco-laden barbecue sauce - and then, distracted, leave the kitchen only to remember a half-hour later and run back - you would find the atmospheric conditions there to be very similar to those produced by this remarkable tobacco. It's slow to burn, very moist and slightly fiddly to prepare. The smoke achieved however is rich, dense and surprisingly cool; a good deal less intimidating on the tongue than its smell might lead you to expect: a bold and spicy leather, really. It packs a fair nicotine wallop, yes, but not an overwhelming one: it produces more a thoughtful reverie than a head-spinning rugby-tackle of a punch. A good one to keep you mollified if you have to catch brief outdoor smokes between a series of long train journeys!

Heavy - and it lends a nice flavor to the pipe. I liken the taste to roasting meat (or fat.) (Black Rope ... It's PEOPLE!!!)

Indeed, my wife often mistakes the smell of smoldering black rope to chicken burning on the grill. Now, if that ain't a reason to try this smoke, I don't know what is! You get tons of people who liken the smell of burning latakia to "Campfires in the fall" etc etc. Well, how many tobaccos can you smoke that remind you of summer barbecue??

For best results, smoke in a clay, as it was meant to be smoked. Chew it first, and then let it dry out and smoke it for a REALLY authentic experience. (It tones down the nicotine ... really! Try it, I dare you.) Baking soda will get the stains off your teeth, I promise.

P.S. I'm pretty sure the term "OLD TAR" comes from the aroma that old sailors who smoked too much black rope must exude from every pore. What more could you possibly want?

A brutal head butt of a smoke with no subtle aspects.

This tobacco grows on me, a bit of this rope have now been in my tobacco jar for a while, and it has done a bit for the taste. Perhaps due to a different moisture level (I have also changed the pipe I use for this tobacco). The taste of this tobacco is a bit fuller right from the start, and I feel the taste of very dark chocolates, and some grape fruit.

As before, the sweetness builds up nicely as the pipe progresses. Sweet and mild smoke tastewise, probably a powerhouse nicotine wise, as I usually break a sweat while smoking it.

*Original review*

My first impression on this tobacco was very bad, smoked it in a small bowled pipe, and perhaps to swift. The roof of my mouth got a coating, and I got a heart burn as well. The taste was that of wet but smoldering card board.

Drying it out a wee bit, and then smoking it in a medium sized meer or a billiard briar, and smoking it slowly, it reveals a completely different character. The first half of the bowl is very mild, and not tasting much at all, but as the sweetnes of the VA's builds up and gains momentum, the taste gets sweeter, fuller, more satisfying. This tobacco do need alot of attention, at least the first half bowl of it.

Very nice on occasion, or when you are all out of dark birdseye. A bowl of this in the morning perks me up.

It's a simple smoke, nothing wrong with that, that will hit the spot (for flavour) when nothing else can. Just don't let yourself be fooled by the mildness of the aroma: you'll get bitten almost instantly if you puff too quickly. Though after getting it lit, it's a tame rope and not a crazed viper.

This is not an exceptionally strong or rough tobacco. The core of it's kick lies in it's smoky and earthy character, not in lashings of nicotine and tar. Latakia may be smoky -though it is confined to the realms of lapsang souchong- Black Irish on the other hand is like putting a few pounds of dry bracken in your mouth and letting your neighbour run at you with a flaming torch.

This is a perfect smoke to accompany a coffee, but it does lack a long nicotine hit and won't keep you going as long as other twists.

A suitable nightcap.

Strong and oily with an all tobacco taste, pure and simple. With G&H Black Irish Twist in your pipe, the cares of the world will quickly fade from your immediate thoughts. All of your attention will be focused on trying to get through your bowlful of the stuff . Of secondary concern (well, for me anyway,) was what to do with the rest of the tin? I finally decided to bury it in my neighbor's back yard. Please don't tell.

Not recommended.

The esteemed Mr. Eulenberg, whose educated palate and prose make him one of the wonders of this site, described Dunhill's Royal Yacht as possessing "all the flavourful charm and sweet redolence of slightly gangrenous horse meat". I would suggest that he sample this abomination. By comparison, Royal Yacht would make a worthy wedding gift to a dear friend.

It's a big world, and there is room for all manner of styles and tastes, yet I cannot for a moment imagine anyone enjoying this. It is downright brutal in its assault on the senses, and brings shame to our gentle art.

I'll describe it nonetheless. An oily, pitch black rope, only slightly foul smelling, it brings nothing but nicotine to the table. The world of wine has Thunderbird, and, well, we have this. Shredding the tough leaves into a manageable form is a chore unrewarded with anything closely resembling smoking pleasure. It looks like used cigar butts, and probably tastes about the same.

The anti-smoking zealots should use this as exhibit A.

Surely there must be uses for such a product. Perhaps the Brits used it to force the evacuation of landing crafts at Normandy. I know I'd rather face enemy fire than this. It may also make a good noose.

I have to go and salt my pipe now, as well as every other pipe in my house, and possibly the tri-state area. Someone should salt the earth where they grow this stuff, as well.

Note preparation: I noticed that there are alot of people who have commented on how much of a pain this tobacco is to prepare for smoking, so I wanted to share my technique.

Slice of segments of the rope into widths of 1/4 of an inch. Place the cut rope segments into a clean coffee grinder a pulse a couple of times. This works really fast, and gives a very manageable cut that packs and blends easily. The uniformity of the cut also makes the burn really consistent.

This was quite a departure from the blends I usually smoke. And that is an understatement. I will never again think that drying and rubbing out flakes is a tedious procedure. This stuff actually requires tools to get it ready to smoke.

I tried cutting it into slices, but found that shredding it was quicker. End result is the same. Then it had to dry.

The taste reminded me of a backyard barbeque - not altogether unpleasant, but unexpected. Actually quite smooth, not the harsh horrible beast I expected. The room note was more potent than the taste. Nicotine content was fairly high. I smoked back-to-back bowls without ill-effect, though there was some effect.

I'll probably re-visit this one, but it's nothing I will want on a regular basis. Just too 'plain-Jane'.

Appearance: Black rope, looks like coyote skat!

Aroma: Fermented leaf, wine and raisin undertones.

Packing: a pain in the rear! You have to cut a section with scissors, then cut the leaf further and rub-out the filler, then pack your pipe.

Lighting: about 4 vestas, better to leave out for an hour or two before filling your pipe.

Flavor: In your face tobacco, but it reminded me of a cheap cigar. It doesn't change down the bowl much. This is not the rich complex flavors that come from a rich stoved VA blend, rather it is plain ole nasty tobaccy. Ash is dark and dry though. Warning, this will leave a strong aftertaste in your mouth that will need a day or two to get rid of and your pipe will also catch the flavor; dedicate a pipe or get a corncob.

Overall: well, at least I tried it. If this were the only tobac available, I would quit smoking. The nicotine was high, but not anymore than say "Stonehaven". I suppose in the world of Alcohol ther is room for "Ripple" and "Thunderbird" and in the world of tobacco we have "Black Irish Rope".

Rating: 0 out of 5 points, trust me don't waste your time on this.